The Reemergence of Wout van Aert | Tour de France 2025 Stage 21 | THEMOVE

Summary

Podcast Summary: THEMOVE – "The Reemergence of Wout van Aert | Tour de France 2025 Stage 21"

Host and Guests:

• Lance Armstrong (Host)
• Bradley Wiggins
• George Hincapie
• Johan Bruyneel (guest via Zoom)
• Alain Azizi
• Spencer Martin

Release Date: July 27, 2025

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Introduction to Stage 21 and New Format

The episode kicks off with Lance Armstrong welcoming listeners back to THEMOVE, highlighting the exceptional performance of Belgian cyclist Wout van Aert in Stage 21 of the Tour de France 2025. Armstrong emphasizes the unpredictability and classic nature of van Aert’s win, describing it as “classic wild Van Aert” (00:00).

Notable Quote:

• Lance Armstrong (00:00): “He couldn't have predicted this. This. This was classic wild Van Aert.”

Guest Introductions and Light Banter

Guests Bradley Wiggins and George Hincapie join Armstrong at the desk, engaging in lighthearted conversation about hats and apparel before delving into the race analysis. Johan Bruyneel joins via Zoom, adding depth to the discussion.

Notable Quote:

• George Hincapie (00:56): “Today? From Mont Laville to Paris Champs Elysees.”

Analysis of Stage 21 and Wout van Aert’s Performance

The conversation shifts to the significance of Stage 21, which marked a departure from the traditional final sprint on the Champs Elysees. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Tour, the ASO introduced a new element inspired by the Olympic circuit, which included a mix of technical terrain and changes in race dynamics.

Notable Quotes:

• Bradley Wiggins (03:17): “I was a big fan of it. Big, big fan.”
• George Hincapie (04:22): “We were not sure.”

The group discusses how the stage's difficulty, compounded by unpredictable weather conditions, added a new dimension to the race. Lance notes the weather’s impact, particularly the heavy rain making the Champs Elysees slick and dangerous: “04:06.”

Notable Quotes:

• Lance Armstrong (04:06): “The weather was wet and raining.”
• George Hincapie (04:22): “We saw setup for a very exciting final stage.”

Strategy and Race Dynamics

Bradley Wiggins expresses his admiration for van Aert’s versatility and his strategic role as a helper for the GC (General Classification) team, which may have limited his personal ambitions: “00:37.” The discussion covers how van Aert managed to drop Tade Pogacar, a dominant force in the last two weeks, highlighting van Aert’s exceptional resilience and tactical prowess.

Notable Quote:

• Lance Armstrong (11:19): “He did something today that nobody was able to do—drop Tade Boguchar.”

Impact of Weather and Route Changes

The episode delves into how the decision to modify the final stage route and stop the time early due to rain influenced race outcomes. Jon Bos Garcia and Alain Azizi provide insights into how these changes affected both the riders’ strategies and the overall excitement of the stage.

Notable Quotes:

• Johan Bruyneel (06:00): “It's not a course for Jonas.”
• Alain Azizi (17:08): “This stage is not favorable for Jonas.”

Performance Highlights and Future Implications

The panel celebrates van Aert’s ten stage wins in the Tour de France, a feat comparable to only a few active riders like Tade Pogacar and Philipson. They discuss his relentless pursuit and ability to maintain top performance despite setbacks, such as crashes and surgeries.

Notable Quote:

• George Hincapie (10:36): “Wout won the hardest, most iconic technical stage of the Tour de France in Paris. What a way to finish it off.”

Debate on Tour de France’s Future and Sustainability

A significant portion of the discussion revolves around the future of the Tour de France and the sustainability of its current format. Lance Armstrong argues for a complete reinvention of the sport to make it more exciting and sustainable, likening the need for change to other major sports that have undergone successful transformations.

Notable Quotes:

• Lance Armstrong (35:10): “This is not a sustainable model in my opinion.”
• Bradley Wiggins (34:06): “The sport needs a refresh.”

Tade Pogacar’s Potential Retirement and Legacy

The conversation shifts to Tade Pogacar, speculating on his possible retirement after the 2025 Tour. Concerns are raised about the sport’s future without his dominance, pondering who might emerge as the next big champion. The panel reflects on Pogacar’s subdued demeanor post-victory, suggesting potential motivations relating to media pressure and personal exhaustion.

Notable Quotes:

• Alain Azizi (37:45): “He seemed annoyed. He was fed up with the press.”
• Bradley Wiggins (38:56): “He was subdued. That was not what I expected.”

Overall Impressions of the 2025 Tour de France

Guests share their high-level impressions of the Tour, acknowledging the thrill of van Aert’s victories while expressing concerns over the changing dynamics and the future landscape of professional cycling. Johan Bruyneel warns of the challenges the sport may face as dominant riders like Pogacar consider retirement.

Notable Quote:

• Johan Bruyneel (30:01): “If you’re a GC rider and you have a three at the beginning of your age, call your agent and extend your contract as long as you can.”

Acknowledgments and Closing Remarks

The episode concludes with acknowledgments to team members, sponsors, and listeners. Armstrong extends congratulations to standout performers and emphasizes the enduring spirit of American cyclists in the Tour.

Notable Quotes:

• George Hincapie (29:25): “Shout out to all the Americans that finished the race.”
• Lance Armstrong (46:58): “Thanks to everybody for tuning in. It's been fun.”

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Key Takeaways:

• Wout van Aert’s Stellar Performance: Demonstrated resilience and strategic brilliance by securing ten Tour de France stage wins.
• Route and Format Changes: ASO’s introduction of Olympic-inspired elements and time stoppages added complexity and excitement but also sparked debate on sustainability.
• Tade Pogacar’s Dominance and Future: Pogacar remains a central figure, with potential retirement looming, posing questions about the sport’s future.
• Need for Sport Reinvention: The panel advocates for a fundamental refresh of cycling’s competitive structure to enhance excitement and longevity.
• American Representation: Strong performance by American cyclists, highlighting the growing influence in international competitions.

Notable Insights:

• The new final stage format, influenced by weather conditions, significantly impacted race outcomes and rider strategies.
• Van Aert’s ability to drop a dominant competitor showcases the evolving tactical landscape in professional cycling.
• Concerns about the sustainability of the current model of the Tour de France indicate a possible shift towards more dynamic and engaging race formats.

Conclusion: The 2025 Tour de France Stage 21, marked by Wout van Aert’s remarkable reemergence, highlighted both the enduring thrill of cycling and the imminent need for strategic evolutions within the sport. As experts debate the future trajectory of the Tour, the episode underscores the delicate balance between tradition and innovation in maintaining the sport’s global appeal.

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Timestamp References:

• [00:00] – Opening remarks on Wout van Aert’s performance
• [00:37] – Discussion on van Aert and ergent's comparison
• [03:17] – Bradley Wiggins on van Aert’s versatility
• [04:06] – Impact of weather on the final stage
• [11:19] – Van Aert drops Pogacar
• [17:09] – Strategy and race dynamics
• [30:01] – Johan Bruyneel on GC riders’ future
• [34:06] – Sport’s need for reinvention
• [37:45] – Pogacar’s potential retirement
• [46:58] – Closing acknowledgments

Transcript

[Lance Armstrong]

He couldn't have predicted this. This. This was classic wild Van Aert.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, yeah. And you say that about him and Matthew. I've always been a. You know, I always still see them two as quite equal. I mean, I know Matthew has. Has elevated himself in the world of the classics and. And wow. Hasn't quite hit that heights yet. But whilst won a month on two, whilst won a time trial in the Tour, whilst, well now on two stages on the Champs Elysees, he's much more versatile rider in some respects and he also committed a couple of years of his life to be a helper for a GC team in this, which I kind of think hampered his. His own sort of personal ambition.

[Lance Armstrong]

All right, everybody, welcome back to the Move, a podcast presented each and every day by Ketone iq. Last day, boys, I am joined by the man, Sir Bradley Wiggins. And what do we have here?

[George Hincapie]

Look down here.

[Spencer Martin]

It.

[Lance Armstrong]

The hat finally shows up on Mr. Georgine Cappy.

[George Hincapie]

Yeah, I was told I had to bring it today, Last day, so busted it out.

[Spencer Martin]

How's it look?

[Lance Armstrong]

Let me see. I mean, it looks good. Straight out of Scarface dog. What do you think, Benny? You like it or.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I love. I love the Johnny Cash shirt.

[Lance Armstrong]

He did up the game.

[George Hincapie]

I'll probably wear this tonight for the Paella party.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Keep it on all day just to keep you shammy time.

[Lance Armstrong]

Also joined as we have been each and every day by Spencer Martin and special guest today, Johan Brunel will be joining us live via Zoom. Also, so we're obviously Talking about stage 21, incredible performance by Wout Van Art. We're going to get into that. Speaking of special guests, we've had a lot of questions. Who is this French guy?

[Bradley Wiggins]

Who is Alain? Who is this guy?

[Lance Armstrong]

He's live and in the flesh. Alain Azizi here to tell us. Alain, what did we do today?

[George Hincapie]

Today? From Mont Laville to Paris Champs Elysees. From Mont Laville to Paris Champs Elysees.

[Lance Armstrong]

I mean, look, in giving George a running with the glasses, I mean, the.

[George Hincapie]

Look, I was actually going to ask if I could borrow that shirt because I think that would go really well with the cowboy hat. Maybe tonight we'll switch.

[Lance Armstrong]

He's ready. All right, Alain, you're good. The professor's coming in now. Look, Alain would have stayed the whole time. He's like, wait a minute, wait a minute. I'm the voice of the Move. All right, Spencer's coming back in. Johan, we have Johan on the line. Just want to make sure that's all live and well, there's a lot. I mean, normally there is not a lot to talk about on the final stage into Paris other than who won the field sprint, but you know, 50 year anniversary of the Tour coming into Paris to finish on the Champs Elysees, they decided to mix it up and give a little nod to the Olympic circuit. We weren't sure.

[George Hincapie]

We were not.

[Bradley Wiggins]

We were not sure.

[Lance Armstrong]

We were not sure. And, and, but I, I think it's safe to say now that I think we're all sure.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

Thoughts about. I mean, we'll get into wout and I thought that was a, A bit of a. The salvage for, for vis Melissa Bikes Tour just because it was so impressive. Impressive and incredible. But, and he's a beast. But with thoughts on this, on mixing.

[Bradley Wiggins]

It up, I thought it was great. I thought I was a big fan of it. Big, big fan. And if you factor the difficulty of that stage in now to the three weeks of racing, it adds a different dimension to it. What I was disappointed about was the. When we weren't exactly sure when they stopped the time for GC, right. Because Jonas rolled in some 10, 15 minutes down Lipovitz as well. And it was made worse by the fact that Tade was in the front and, and dictating the race racing. And I think it would have thrown a different, you know, whole new set of problems in had it been GC on the line like it would have any other bike race. But I was a big fan of it.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Just disappointed how it nullified the GC battle where there could have been some gains and some losses there.

[Lance Armstrong]

Those two factors, right. There's where they take the time which. Whether or not that. That. Which leads to kind of. My second factor was the weather.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

The weather was. Was wet and raining. I don't know if the decision to change the time was due to the rain, but, but you do that stage dry. Yeah, you should probably. You made a great point. Like nobody stopped the time at the bottom of the Ventu or Laplana, right.

[George Hincapie]

So that said there we have seen GC neutral neutralized for rain especially. I don't know. I don't think I remember the last time I've seen so much rain on the champs. It's super slick. You don't want to see one of these guys in the top three go down because of the rain. I was hating on the course, the change, you know, from the historic Champs Elysees sprinter stage to today's. But man, watching it as a fan, that was super exciting. Last stage of The Tour, Spencer.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Well, if it was. If it was raining yesterday. What if one of these guys crashes yesterday?

[Bradley Wiggins]

You could say about every day, couldn't you?

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Why not just stop Parenberg?

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah. You know, so I do worry about. I wish it was lifetime. Other than that, no notes. Amazing. You got to keep it in.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Like Wout van Art going again. The two. Not the two best, but two of the three best classic shriders in the world going head to head on that circuit. Which I was telling Bradley. Sometimes the Champs Elysees can feel sterile because they. Everyone's pushed out. It's just a large, like, almost like a militaristic road. So it was very cool to see them snaking through actual neighborhoods with the crowd on top of them.

[Lance Armstrong]

Yeah, well, it was anything but wide.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[George Hincapie]

Arguably one of the most iconic stages of the Tour de France. The amount of people, the course, the how technical it was, how hard it was. I thought it was super.

[Bradley Wiggins]

The museum, they went past at the top.

[Lance Armstrong]

Yeah, Yeah. I had to correct Sir Bradley on that. Johan, thoughts on this. On this change of the final day in Paris, the same.

[Alain Azizi]

I mean, initially I wasn't a fan of it, having seen it. Now I love it. It was great. And we've been there. I mean, the picture I have behind Lance. We have a picture, you and I with that.

[Spencer Martin]

Yep.

[Lance Armstrong]

We, we were. Johan and I were in. I was in Paris visiting my son who was in culinary school and Johan came up to visit and this was well before the Olympics and we said we should go check this thing out and do a preview of the Olympic course. I had never been up to Montmartre ever.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

All these times in Paris, that weird. It was cool. Look. I give it two thumbs up. I'm totally down with the change. We'll get into Wout's performance and a lot of other things. And stay tuned to the second half of the show too, where I think going to have some fun just talking about. And I cannot wait to hear Johan's impressions, just overall impressions of this 2025 tour. So be ready. George would like to go first. I'm letting you go first, George. Today's show brought to you by Zwift, who recently rolled out its new Cog and click product. You can use almost any bike that you own. Even when you buy from some random store, still feels like you're on a top end. Smart trainer. Zwift ready trainers are available from all top manufacturers like Wahoo Garmin Elite Jet Black Decathlon setting a new benchmark for indoor Training. All Zwift ready trainers come with the new Zwift cog and click installed. Making them. It's been three weeks. Making them ready to ride from the box. No extras needed. So simple. And no need to remove your cassette. Zwift ready trainers start at just 2. 99.

[Spencer Martin]

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[Lance Armstrong]

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[Spencer Martin]

Right?

[Lance Armstrong]

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[Spencer Martin]

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[Lance Armstrong]

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[George Hincapie]

I think I could.

[Lance Armstrong]

I actually agree.

[Spencer Martin]

There he is.

[Lance Armstrong]

Oh, he's back. Oh, no. I'm telling you, he is the gift, folks. He's the gift that keeps on giving and timeline. As someone who's trained hard most of my life, I've learned that real performance doesn't just come from the gym. It starts at the cellular level. That's why I take Mito Pure by Timeline. It's a supplement that supports cellular energy by helping your body renew its mitochondria, those tiny powerhouses inside your cells that start to slow down as you age. Johan, the science is strong. Mito Pure is clinically shown. It's clinically shown to improve muscle strength in just a few months. I personally love the zero gummy zero sugar gummies. I take them daily. Simple, clean, easy to use. Head over to timeline.com themove to get started. You'll get 20% off as a listener of the show. That's timeline.com the move. Wild Van Art. You know, the guy, he's had a rough couple years. I mean, he came into the sport. I mean, when I think about him and I think about Matthew Vanderpool, there was a minute and we had this debate on the show years ago. They were, they were kind of, they were kind of right there and then obviously Vanderpool has pulled ahead there. And while it's had some bad crashes, some surgeries. You saw how emotional he was this year winning that stage in the Giro. He couldn't have predicted this. This, this was classic Wout van art.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, yeah. And you say that about him and Matthew. I've always been a. You know, I always still see them two as quite equal. I mean, I know Matthew is elevated himself in the world of the classics and. Wow. Hasn't quite hit that height yet, but. Well, it's one on one's won a time drawing the Tour. Well now on two stages on the Champs Elysees, he's much more versatile rider in some respects. And he also committed a couple of years of his life to be a helper for a GC team in this, which I kind of think hampered his. His own sort of personal ambition.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Well, he, he basically won the Italia for Visma this year. Yeah, like, and we're, we're talking about the guy like he's a bum. He's won more time. He's won as many times in the Champlize as Matthew Vanderpoel has won Tour de France stages total.

[George Hincapie]

I wouldn't say we're talking about him like a bum, but not only did he help the team win the Giro, he won the hardest state, one of the hardest stages in zero most iconic.

[Lance Armstrong]

Yeah.

[George Hincapie]

And now, I mean, arguably, yeah, Matteo Vanderboel crushed the first part of the Tour de France within the yellow jersey, won a stage, but nobody's really remembering that. I mean, wout won the hardest, I mean, the most iconic technical stage of the Tour de France in Paris. What a way to finish it off. 10 state, 10 Tour de France stage wins, which, I mean, I didn't even know that until they said it on tv.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He's won stages in the last three.

[George Hincapie]

Grand Tours, never gives up. I mean, look what happened to him in the Vuelta last year. He was on a roll, winning everything, like fingers in the nose, crashes out for the rest of the year, comes back, does an amazing classic season, albeit not doesn't get a win until the Giro. And then, I mean, yesterday he even said in his interview he had a crappy legs. Yesterday he couldn't even make the breakaway. But he never gives up and today wins the stage. So fun to watch.

[Lance Armstrong]

And, and I think most importantly, he did something today that nobody was able to do correct for three weeks. And that's drop Tade Boguchar. Three.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Three weeks or two years.

[Lance Armstrong]

Yeah, but let's just focus on it.

[George Hincapie]

It's funny because you. We, we were watching and we're like hold on to his wheel. Hold on to his wheel. And not only did he hold onto his wheel, he popped him and dropped him right at the top. So, I mean, he was super confident. Mat Jorgensen was up there softening Tade's legs up, taking him off the back a bit, doing some attacks. I mean, that's the only way you're going to beat this guy is you have to soften him up. And they came in with a plan today. And al, although we criticized their tactics throughout the Tour de France, today was.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Today was magic.

[George Hincapie]

Like magic.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He's done four Grand Tours in the last 13 months as well. Well, since last year's Tour de France.

[Johan Bruyneel]

He would have won the mountains and the points classification of the V last year had he not crashed. Yeah, not too shabby.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He's the boy. He's a boomstick today.

[George Hincapie]

Boomstick.

[Spencer Martin]

All right.

[Bradley Wiggins]

As for you, well, personally signed.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Where do you guys rank this victory amongst Wout van Art Tour de France victories? Is this the most iconic or is it still Von 2 man?

[George Hincapie]

I'm going to go with today because of the rain.

[Lance Armstrong]

I'm with you.

[George Hincapie]

The people coming onto the champs. I say solo. How many times in the history of cycling have we seen somebody roll into the champions? They solo for the win. Bradley, you can have.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Well, the last time was Vina Kurov. Wasn't it in 2005 when he attacked in the final?

[Lance Armstrong]

I was there, though.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Before that it was eddie senior in 94.

[George Hincapie]

Yeah, but it's very rare that.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, very rare.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Do you guys know how many active. The active riders that have more Tour stage wins than Art?

[Lance Armstrong]

No, Tade.

[Johan Bruyneel]

One would be Tade.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Right.

[Johan Bruyneel]

And then I think the only other one that is even equal to him is Philipson has 10. And then it's wow.

[Lance Armstrong]

With.

[Johan Bruyneel]

With 10. It's very rare to have 10 tour victories. To be an active writer.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

I think you, I think you have to consider it.

[Spencer Martin]

All right.

[Lance Armstrong]

The, the, the curiosity about this new format of this stage, the weather.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

As you just said, four grand tours in the last one. 13, 13 months. The injuries, the crashes, the comeback, like, if you put all that together, I mean, this is, this is bigger than. Look, we watched him win on bon2. I didn't feel then what I felt today.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

I mean, it was incredible. It was incredible. It was a boss move.

[George Hincapie]

Also a testament of how Tour de France, how hard it actually was this year. In the last two stages, which are typically breakaway stages, were solo victories. I mean, people are just on their deathbeds right now, just trying to. A lot of them. I'd say the majority of the peloton is just crawling to the finish line, happy it's over.

[Lance Armstrong]

You know, speaking of the stage, Johan. What?

[Spencer Martin]

What?

[Lance Armstrong]

And you probably have a better line on this than we do over here in the U.S. but overall, what do you think today's. And I'm talking about today's peloton that was there today in the race. What do you think their impression of this stage was?

[Alain Azizi]

Well, I think it changed a lot with the weather. Right. I mean, you have this stage in the dry. In the dry conditions, and it would have been different. I mean, I think as we thought initially, you know, I've heard the majority of the riders were not a fan. I think they're going to change their mind, especially racing through those crowds. And yeah, I mean, for me, one of the takeaways of today's stage is also a part of, you know, the amazing performance of Walt is to really see the difference in which kind of riders today. Pogachar and Jonas Fingergard.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah. Wow. Yeah.

[Alain Azizi]

You know, I mean, today was in there and he wanted to win this stage in yellow. And he. I mean, he was close. And the other GC riders just said, okay, you know what? No risks. I mean, because they took risks.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[George Hincapie]

But Johan, I could see that. But they probably know they didn't have very much of a chance to win the actual stage. So Poker Chart had a great chance to win. Probably wanted to win in the yellow jersey. I can see the differences in motivation. I think if we were in similar positions with zero chance of winning the stage and you didn't have to worry about the time cut, you'd probably. I mean, I think we'd all be like, all right, I'm just going to chill into the finish line.

[Lance Armstrong]

Well, there's that consideration that's. That that's totally fair. Like, if you don't want to take any risks and the time has stopped, then it's. It's well within your rights to do that. I think what Johan's saying, and as we were watching, I know what Sir Bradley was saying was just as Tade Pogac. What was he doing? Yes, he wanted to win the stage, but most importantly, he was honoring his position in the race, which the position he has right now gives him a yellow jersey. He is honoring that position. Second place is also a damn good result.

[Spencer Martin]

I agree.

[Lance Armstrong]

So I think what I'm hearing is you also should honor that position as well. Same goes for Florian Lipowicz. And honor it.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

I think that's. Yeah, that's.

[Bradley Wiggins]

That's the gripe that would have been the best thing to do. And also, he was riding around today keeping Taday's polka dot jersey warm. So not only was he 10 minutes down, he was riding around in Taday's other jersey that he won in this race, you know, while his two teammates are in the front that have been riding balls deep for him for three weeks now.

[George Hincapie]

Well, and camper now. Three teammates.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, three teammates.

[Bradley Wiggins]

You know what I mean?

[Johan Bruyneel]

And how do you feel if you're visma and you finish and then you're, like, waiting for your leader? I just.

[George Hincapie]

I don't know. I don't think they can take any negatives out of today. I mean, winning that stage. Two stages in the Tour de France, obviously they wanted to win the yellow jersey, but they got to go home with their hands, heads held high.

[Lance Armstrong]

I believe we might pick that up.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Would Wild not have appreciated a little bit of help? I mean, he wins. That's awesome. But it's like they had another writer physically capable of being up there helping him.

[Lance Armstrong]

Personally.

[Alain Azizi]

Spencer, I think. I think on today's course, and especially with these weather conditions, this is not a course for Jonas.

[Johan Bruyneel]

I think.

[Lance Armstrong]

Well, we.

[Alain Azizi]

We.

[Lance Armstrong]

We all agree with that.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah. But you could say that about any stage, about any rider in the Tour de France. That's why the Tour de France is so difficult, and that's why it's so difficult to get up there and win it and be on the podium, is because you have to do 21 days. You don't do 21 and a half stages or 20 and a half stages.

[Lance Armstrong]

Real quick before we go to break.

[George Hincapie]

For a Getting spiced up.

[Lance Armstrong]

In fact, I might wait. I might have to save it.

[George Hincapie]

If our viewers don't remember, he did lead. Kevin, this is the yellow jersey.

[Bradley Wiggins]

That's what I'm talking about.

[Lance Armstrong]

It took him three weeks to get warmed up to do that.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Well, I'm talking about.

[Lance Armstrong]

And it's taking him three weeks.

[Bradley Wiggins]

You should hear him and should be there.

[Lance Armstrong]

You should hear him when the cameras aren't here, folks.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah. Wow.

[Lance Armstrong]

We'll be back in 2 and 32. All right, and we're back. And as we were at break there, we. We just couldn't help ourselves. We kept talking about this new and some would say, most would say improved finish here in Paris and on the Champs Elysees. The debate here at the desk was just continued on about the time stoppage, and we. We also didn't know. So I think we're. The professor here had an interesting stat for us.

[Johan Bruyneel]

That triggering stat.

[Lance Armstrong]

As I got, Mr. Wiggins really lit up, but Florian Lipowitz actually gained nine seconds on Tade Pogachar as he was off the front. So it sounds like the stoppage of time was the first time through the start finish line on the Champs Elysees before even climbing Montmartre. My point was that in many ways this was an experiment for aso. This was, let's try this. Right. And with experiments and you test and you check it out and you make corrections. And we're not the only people that sit here and say, feels like everybody should have to race to the finish line. So I'm assuming they'll continue. I think they're going to get a lot of positive feedback on the actual circuit and they'll probably get some. Some negative feedback that there's been stoppages of the time.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Yeah, I mean, if it is a test, then. But you don't test at the Tour de France. And I think that's all very well. And from. From their test today, what they're going to do next year say, okay, it's too dangerous for GC guys after three weeks of racing. So the GC stops every time we come through, and then whoever wants to race can race. But today has put a cat amongst the pigeons doing that by being in the front because he was willing to risk all.

[Lance Armstrong]

And he totally was.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I mean, and. And he wasn't. He wasn't planning on going across the finish line the first time and GC stopping. And that's it. So Lipovic gained nine seconds on him and then finished an hour down on the stage.

[George Hincapie]

I think the way Toddy came into it was, you know, I'm gonna go as hard as I can up the first time up.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Exactly.

[George Hincapie]

Split it up. And then you're not really risking anymore. When you're with four, five, six guys, it's a lot safer. Obviously, if you think about.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah. Or like the Gird Italia, the Fenestra, it's a big gravel climb. Why not neutralize that? That's not good for everybody. Richard Carapaz struggled on that. So let's neutralize it.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Any other bike race in the calendar, you would. You would race to the line. If that was a Tour Catalunya, if that was, you know, four days at Dunkirk down part of the bike racing Tour. Missouri, Georgia, Georgia. Punt.

[Lance Armstrong]

We've. We've spent a. We spent a lot of time these three weeks talking about our Homeboy Quinn Simmons. It's seemingly been on the front of the bike race 50% of the time.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

He's just been every day. I was watching him like, how is this guy still on the front or going in brakes or pulling for the team? Like, this dude's got endless energy. Well, clearly he didn't spend enough time at the front of the race. Are in the breakaways.

[Spencer Martin]

He didn't.

[Lance Armstrong]

I mean he clearly has more energy.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

And just have a look at this picture.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

This. And I'll tell you. I mean let's just. I thought the picture was bigger. We snipped it a little bit. I mean homegirls way up in the.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I mean without any context. That looks quiet. That looks could be a different news story though.

[George Hincapie]

Getting engaged on the Shaman.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Oh, that's what happened. Was it?

[Lance Armstrong]

Okay, so congratulations to Quinn Simmons and his. I don't know her name. But his new fiance, that's Jennifer. We don't know. But that's. It was better on TV and the. And. And. But you know, he's grabbing it. I mean come on, man. She should be carrying him. There we go. A little bigger, huh? She got the cowboy boots on. He's still wearing his cleats on the. On cobblestones.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

The rate that was three laps to go. That's when they stopped the clock.

[George Hincapie]

And apparently he said he had that planned since December, so.

[Lance Armstrong]

He did. He said. Yeah, he said. He said he started planning it when he made. Was on the. The long list.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

To be selected for the Tour. Because I didn't think he got sort of told.

[Johan Bruyneel]

No.

[Lance Armstrong]

He was like short list until which maybe extra motivation.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Maybe that's why he was flying in May and June because he needed to get to the Tour.

[Lance Armstrong]

I thought he wrote a hell of a race.

[Spencer Martin]

I thought a lot of the.

[Lance Armstrong]

Most of the Americans. All the Americans finished.

[Spencer Martin]

I thought. I thought. I thought.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I thought we did.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Well, I mean Mateo was to the final stage win.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

Mateo's.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

Anyways, we're not going to talk about the lantern Rouge. It's up on the board, are we? No, we're not. We're not talking about that.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Should we just say their name?

[Lance Armstrong]

Yeah, I forgot some Cerrone Caroni or something. It's close.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Simone.

[Spencer Martin]

Okay.

[Lance Armstrong]

Somebody.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Little trick.

[George Hincapie]

Little trick.

[Lance Armstrong]

A little track. Got. They got. They had the Lantown Rouge locked up. They got last and second to last. Yeah, but they finished.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

Koroni Cerrone. You got mentioned on the move, buddy.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He's no pancake.

[George Hincapie]

There's not many better feeling than cycling rolling across the champs. Whether you're in first protecting the yellow jersey, or go leading out your teammate for the stage win, or just getting across the line knowing that you risked your life for three weeks and you made it safely.

[Lance Armstrong]

Well, that's a good point. I mean it, because you had some guys coming across the finish line today. 10, 15, 20 minutes down. I think we all know. And Johan, you're here too. You know what it's like to roll in with basically the whole peloton. Yeah, I would have to imagine that does feel different.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah. Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

You've seen the guy who is winning that. You can see him, he's right there. He's winning on the Champs Elysees and you're. And you're just sort of getting sucked through. I would think that does feel different.

[George Hincapie]

I agree.

[Bradley Wiggins]

They used to be it was quite lucrative to finish last in the Tour de France. You'd get start money at the criteriums afterwards, really, as the Lonton Rouge. You were a bit of a folk hero, I think.

[George Hincapie]

I remember years where they actually did track stands between one or two guys to see who can get to the well.

[Bradley Wiggins]

They were doing that.

[Lance Armstrong]

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[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

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[Bradley Wiggins]

Do you know who else was a Navy Seal?

[Lance Armstrong]

Lucy's dad, Jesse Ventura.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He was a Navy seal.

[Lance Armstrong]

I didn't know that.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

It was like in the early stages of the program.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He lives in the Baja now.

[Lance Armstrong]

I hope he does. Let me tell you something. If I was Jesse Ventura, how are the restrictions? I would live in Baja too.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Building restrictions. I can build as high as you like.

[Lance Armstrong]

Let's as we sort of get to the end of this. It's been a. It's been a fun tour. It's been fun. Mr. Bradley. Been fun to have you sitting here. We got you for a little bit last year.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

Nice to have you the whole time. I hope you enjoyed it. Nice to have.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Best job in the world.

[Lance Armstrong]

You can go on Glassdoor if you don't mind. Just making some comments about the workplace environment here at Wedo. You know, they have this guy Lance. Guy eats all the cinnamon rolls. Treats people like.

[George Hincapie]

Very protective over those cinnamon rolls.

[Lance Armstrong]

Don't touch my cinnamon rolls. And don't cut them with a fork.

[George Hincapie]

I know I took a little chunk the other day. You got all mad.

[Lance Armstrong]

You rock up. You destroyed all the icing.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Blow the toilet.

[Lance Armstrong]

Clogged the toilet. You have Cav's number, right?

[Spencer Martin]

Yep.

[Lance Armstrong]

Kev's ready.

[Bradley Wiggins]

We might need a booster seat for him, but.

[Spencer Martin]

Wow.

[Lance Armstrong]

It's been a long tour by the way too. While I got you. Tour de France, Fam of exwess. Started yesterday. Had staged too early this morning. I was sitting in the seat somewhere right around 7, 7:30 this morning. I got another week to go. Sorry it's kicked off. It's been exciting.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Been good. I watched it.

[Lance Armstrong]

It is, it is. I got Texts from people saying, wow, this is more exciting than. And what have we been watching lately? And in many ways it can be. So tune into that show if you can. I just want to go around the horn and. And just get overall impressions of this 2025 tour. You say what? You know, whether it's the, the format, the players, the sport in general. George, I know you want to, you want to kick us off, so I'm gonna let you have at it. But just impressions of. High level impressions of this Tour.

[George Hincapie]

Well, another exciting Tour de France. I mean we, we can't really imagine a non exciting Tour de France. Albeit the race was pretty much over 10 days in with Tade establishing his dominance once again. But I was speaking with Spencer earlier before the show and it's essentially they've gone to head to head four times and. And Jonas has won twice. Tade's won twice.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, we're disqualifying first.

[George Hincapie]

Yeah, we're just won the first one. He kind of just rolled into that leadership position when Roglic went away. So in my mind there's still hopes for some epic battles in the years to come. I also loved the. The battle for the podium with perhaps these new emerging superstars of cyclists, Oscar Onlee and Florian Lipowitz, who I think they'll be talked in the same breath as Remco, Evan Lepoul in the next few years perhaps, you know, can win the Tour de France in three, four, five years. We never know.

[Spencer Martin]

Right?

[George Hincapie]

Speaking of Quinn Simmons, in my opinion, most aggressive rider of the Tour de France. I know he didn't get on the podium, but watching the American muscle make the heart.

[Lance Armstrong]

We saw it.

[George Hincapie]

We saw it.

[Lance Armstrong]

We just started.

[George Hincapie]

Breakaways of the race. Always there, always our represent. Even today he was away. I love seeing that Mateo Jorgensen was in the breakaway final move today. My opinion, a Tour de France podium contender as well. He had a couple bad days due to illness, I believe, but this is America's new hope for the podium of the Tour de France. Loved watching that.

[Lance Armstrong]

I should have warned George. There's a cap on time.

[George Hincapie]

I know. Okay, so I'm trying.

[Lance Armstrong]

To. Should we. Should we turn it? Start turning up the music Slowly. Last thing.

[George Hincapie]

That's why I wanted to go first, but no, lastly, just shout out to all the Americans that finished the race, all five of them, you know, we. That we were well represented in distorted France and cannot wait till 2026.

[Lance Armstrong]

Yeah. Johan, overall thoughts 2025 tour.

[Alain Azizi]

I'm going to disagree with George.

[George Hincapie]

Always, always.

[Lance Armstrong]

We expect that but just before you say anything, Johan, for, for, for the, for the listener or the viewer at home or wherever you are. These boys have been disagreeing for a long time. So this is nothing new. Don't, don't, don't get worried. Okay? Fire away, Johan.

[Alain Azizi]

Yeah, no, I, I disagree with the fact it's two against two. I think two, two years with Jonas. Two years. I think, I think the difference is huge right now with this tale Pogacha. I can't see right now how Jonas can get close if today remains on this level.

[Lance Armstrong]

That's right.

[Alain Azizi]

Can you hear me?

[Spencer Martin]

Yep, yep.

[Alain Azizi]

And, and then one, one thing that I think we, we, we seem to forget is that just imagine guys, if, if Joe Almeida wouldn't have crashed out and if Joel Maehda was on uae, I think these last few mountain stages would have been very, very different because now basically it was today leading out Jonas and, and, and of course he couldn't attack with a full, full fit jaw Almeida. I think the difference would still have been bigger.

[Lance Armstrong]

Okay, Bradley.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I mean the second half this Tour I thought was a bit of an anti climax from GP GC's perspective. The race was essentially over after the mountain time trial and you know, the, the nature of the route it was weighted towards the first half of this race with the danger that we all spoke about riding through Northern France and, and the potential time gaps and the time losses you could have there that would be decisive in the Tour de France later on in the race. But we saw some exciting stages nonetheless. I think this Tade Boccaccio is on another level to everybody else and it's more a question of when he chooses to leave the sport as to when we'll see the next Tour de France winner from, from another nation. So it's, it's, and then the void I think he'll leave in the sport when he does go. He's set the benchmark now in so many other ways, so many different ways. Training the way he races, the way he is with the press and the media and it's going to be a difficult void to fill. We were talking earlier, when's the next French winner going to come from the sport? You can't see anyone down there. Vlan's miles away from, from ever being on a level of to win the Tour. But so I, I, I fear for the sport in the sense of five or six years time when Tadde decides to leave as to who's going to replace him. And it was very similar in basketball when Jordan left We were talking about that the other day, so all in all. Yeah, I mean, it was okay. It was all right to watch. Lance, what was your take?

[Lance Armstrong]

Well, I'm gonna let Spencer fire right quick and then unfortunately, I get to go last and probably repeat a lot about. I should say what I just heard.

[Johan Bruyneel]

We're a little down in the French. There's two nationalities that got two riders in the top 10. Can you guys name them?

[Lance Armstrong]

Austrian, Slovenian, and France.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Yeah, so not. Not too bad from France, actually. Quietly impressive. My. My takeaway.

[Bradley Wiggins]

How far down was you, though?

[Johan Bruyneel]

Well, we don't talk about that.

[Bradley Wiggins]

No, we do it' point.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Von is 22 and a half.

[Spencer Martin]

That's my point.

[Johan Bruyneel]

There might be a French rider that is good in the future. We won't mention him because he's not in the Tour, but my takeaway is if you're a GC rider and you have a three at the beginning of your age, call your agent and extend your contract as long as you can, because you're going to be extinct soon. Because there's one rider over the age of 30 in this top 10 and it's Primus Raglich and he was 25 minutes down. Like, that's not boding well for the future of GC riders aged 30 or older. And so I think it's like a tour of. I think we just saw a lot of change. Like, think of before coming in, you'd be like, oh, dark horse, the Yates brothers. And it just felt like we watched even from the Giro to the Tour, we watched the sport kind of mature. I would also say I'm a little worried about, like, think when Ted I won in 2020 came out of nowhere. Not really nowhere, but kind of nowhere is like a 21 year old, 20 year old and he beats Roglic. Well, during this Tour, there's three UAE riders, all older than Tade was when he won the Tour. Igor Arrieta, Isaac del Toro, Antonio Morgato. They go 1, 2, 3 in a. In a small race in Spain. I just worry like, what if Pagachar was on Visma and Visma's like, well, let's not send him to the Tour because we have Roglic and we never see the rise of Tade. Like, is UAE collecting all these riders, then suppressing the rise of the next great rider? That's my big.

[Bradley Wiggins]

That's a great point.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

I'll go last. I'll first talk about the route. I thought, and I want to give a lot of credit to aso. I Thought and I've said this many, many times, it is their race, it is their right to pick and choose whatever route they want to do. I got to say I thought the route was exceptional. The first week, which typically can be a snooze fest, was dynamic, was exciting. We were interested in that all the way to the finish.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

Mixing it up here in Paris. This was a risky move, right. I give them a lot of credit. And whoever's decision that was over there to do that, I give them a lot of credit. And then all the way in the middle, you have things obviously Vontu near and dear to my heart. It's a place that I feel like the tour should go more often than it doesn't. So route wise, I give it really, really solid marks when it comes to the competition. The way that I would sum up Tadeh Poguchar is. Tade is not. He's not a generational talent.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

He is a historical talent.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

So you have to consider. Forget this generation. We can talk about all these names and talk about who might be coming. Forget it. You have to talk about him in the context with regards to the history of the sport. He is historical. We are seeing him. You saw it all the way up until today, right? And that's today's performance of his was. Was almost more mental and more an issue of. Of just honor that we've just not. You'd have to go back to Hino and Merckx and look, I know what I would have done on that stage. It wouldn't have been popular with Sir Bradley. I would have been like, they stopped the time.

[Spencer Martin]

Cool.

[Lance Armstrong]

I'm not taking any risks. I would have done that.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

And I watch him. This kid is. He is. He will go down as the greatest of all time. And you feel for all the guys that have to come up against him. It is not close. And part and parcel to that is the race can be underwhelming, right? To your point, Sir Bradley. Last thing I'll say. And there's been a little. There's been some nods to this in Yalls comments to me as I watch this and I touched on this a couple of days ago. This sport, forget the refresh you were discussing. This sport needs a refresh. We have to reimagine. We have to reinvent this sport. This is not a sustainable model in my opinion.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

And would it be different if you had five guys duking it out? Imagine if you had five guys coming into the last half week that were closed that could compete and there was attacks everywhere. And then you finish here in Paris with this stage. Yeah, that's a lot more exciting. But the. But the foundation and the structure of the sport needs to be blown up and rebuilt. I said that the other day, and I'm. And I mean it. And I'm gonna say it again today. That's my takeaway. But overall, I mean, I give it probably higher marks than you.

[Spencer Martin]

Right.

[Lance Armstrong]

I thought it was. I was. I was fairly. I was fairly amused.

[Alain Azizi]

I just like to add one thing, Lance, about Pogachar, and I want to ask you and Bradley what you have experienced. I think one of the things we have to consider with Pugachar is it's not when he's going to retire. To me, it looks like, I mean, especially the last week, is about the motivation. Yeah, he seemed bored to me. He seemed annoyed. He was fed up with the press. And. And you guys, both of you guys know how difficult that is. So this could be a factor that actually influences his future.

[Spencer Martin]

Well, what do you.

[Alain Azizi]

What do you guys think?

[Lance Armstrong]

I mean, listen. Yo. And you're. You're in Madrid. When we watched Toddy Poker's final interview, I said to you guys, I said, this kid is. Is. I didn't say bored. I said, he's subdued. Like, this is. That was not what I expected. Um, and. And I have been the guy who's. Who's won the Tour de France a lot of times and beat people by 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 minutes. It's not that fun, I gotta be honest. And you. And it's not that you need other challenges, but after a while, when I saw him today, I thought, wow, that is muted and subdued. I'm totally with you, Johan.

[Bradley Wiggins]

He was waiting on the finish line for his team to finish, and Adam Yates was there, and he said to Adam, they said, we'll wait five more minutes before we get changed and stuff, because they were waiting for their team to come in to celebrate. He was then. Had been there for 10 minutes already. He turned to his carer, who was stood there with the towels on. He goes, how was your day? Which I thought was incredible. And then the cameras picked it up and the sound picked it up. But, I mean, that's not the normal. You know, normally it's, you know, the. The joy that comes on the show. And when you finish across the line today was just like, yeah, I agree with you. I think he is.

[Lance Armstrong]

And right before we came on air, I don't know if. If we can feel it's accurate. But you read a snippet in the press that Tade had alluded to potentially riding through LA28 and retiring there.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Well, yeah, I mean, this is a. I'm reading a French snippet from lakeep, and he just says, I. I don't know how much I'll go on. I know how much longer I'll go on. The LA Olympics are one of my goals. They're three years from now. After that, I might start thinking about retirement. But, Johan, do we.

[Lance Armstrong]

Is it possible.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Am I remembering, like, Tom Boonen retired from the Tour but kept racing? Do you guys remember this? He got in a spat with ASO and just stopped showing up to the Tour. We ever see that?

[Lance Armstrong]

But that.

[Alain Azizi]

Yeah, that's not. Tom Boonen was not a Tour de France rider.

[Lance Armstrong]

No, nobody cares. I mean, the same. They didn't care about that.

[Johan Bruyneel]

I mean, seeing Tada at this Tour, I was kind of wondering if he's like, two years from now, if he's like, hey, Joel, you go win the Tour.

[Lance Armstrong]

I mean, look, I didn't. I didn't know. I don't know where you pulled that. I didn't know where you pulled that quote. Quote from. You pulling that from Lakeb. That's the paper of record for the Tour de France and for sports in France. That's pretty solid outlet. I heard it loud and clear.

[Johan Bruyneel]

I mean, what if I asked you, I run up to you 2004 on the Champlus, would you be more likely to be thinking about retirement or, like, when you're done with the Tour, you're like, I'm done with this. I'm never coming back. Or are you, like, excited to come back already when you're finishing?

[Lance Armstrong]

No, I. I knew when I was. I knew when I had penciled in the. In the calendar of. Of my final year.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah, yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

And I was fine to come back. And now it's. It is more exciting when you duke it out. But no, I. I didn't. I. The one of the images that will stick with me is that final interview. I was like, man, what's up?

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

And by the way, I've been in that seat and probably had the sort of same subdued, muted response, and you want some energy, you want some excitement, and I'm sitting there saying, look, all right, well, you guys paid me to win. I wanted to win. I ran the process to win, and now I've won, and now I am leaving.

[Spencer Martin]

Right?

[Lance Armstrong]

I'm gonna go back to my friends and family, and I cannot wait to start running this process. Again, if his brain is even remotely thinking that, I would tell you that is not. Look, I have a lot of regrets in my career, but I. If there was one included in all that, that I could go back and change is savor that moment. And so I feel for him. I do.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[George Hincapie]

I could see them like you guys finishing the Tour. Three weeks of just mass attention under the microscope, media suffering on the bike six hours a day. You just kind of looking forward to going home and being quiet around your, you know, your significant others and your family and just staying out of the constant spotlight. We have people, hundreds of people waiting for you outside the bus.

[Bradley Wiggins]

I mean, or shooting off to the Olympics. Win Olympic gold.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[George Hincapie]

Or doing that, what you did.

[Lance Armstrong]

I just realized we can't end our three week coverage of the Tour de France like that, feeling bad for the guy. If anybody has a picture of Tye Poguchar, like, shirt off, spraying champagne. Yeah, that's what we need, you know, lighting something up, whatever, please send it.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Because, well, we might see them later. What's the disc? The nightclub everyone goes to on Paris on the last night.

[George Hincapie]

Oh, boy, I forgot.

[Lance Armstrong]

I do need to just real quick, last one of the Tour Ventum Daily trivia. The question was the years that Cavendish won on the champs Elysees. That was 0, 9.

[Spencer Martin]

Wow.

[Lance Armstrong]

Check this out. 9, 10, 11, 12.

[Spencer Martin]

Wow.

[Lance Armstrong]

And also the grand prize winner this year, Brian Regan from Framingham, Massachusetts. He played 11 of the total 20 stages, but it was his correct answer on stage 14 that ended up sealing the deal. Brian Regan from Framingham, Massachusetts gets himself a new Ventum.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Congratulations, Brian.

[Lance Armstrong]

Johan, before we cut you loose, anything?

[Alain Azizi]

Oh, I think we've covered it all. I think you guys forgot to mention also about Quinn Simmons. He got the. The award of the best. Teammates love it. So not the most aggressive. That was given to Ben Healy, but Quinn Simmons has. Has received the award of the best teammate of the Tour de France. I think that's worth mentioning.

[George Hincapie]

Yeah, for sure.

[Lance Armstrong]

Well, and you can't argue with Ben Healy. I mean, he was. I know we have our. We're partial to. To the Americans. Ben Healy was.

[George Hincapie]

I agree.

[Lance Armstrong]

Stage win two Stage wins two days in yellow one. Stage win one stage almost one on two. So stage win. Daniello Tried every single day. I'm not. I'm not arguing against that. For most aggressive rider.

[Spencer Martin]

Great, great.

[Lance Armstrong]

Well, that I know what happened at the end there. I felt like a little.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Well, I'm looking at. Pagato is 26 years old. There's only five riders that have ever won more tours than him in history. And he's 26.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

Like that's kind of incredible.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Johan Bruyneel]

And we're already retiring him. Trying to figure out where he's going to go.

[Lance Armstrong]

Look, this is a different sport. Yeah. You forget looking at the ages.

[Spencer Martin]

And.

[Lance Armstrong]

You said it best. If you're, if you even remotely think you're a top 10 GC writer and your age starts with a three, just go, go over there and say, hey, give me as much as you can get contract wise. Because they call that the.

[George Hincapie]

I think a lot of these guys are happy if they make it till they're 30 years old because it's the intensity now in the training and the measuring your food constantly like it is a completely different ball game. And I, I don't imagine many writers going past 30 years.

[Bradley Wiggins]

Well, on, on that. Give a special mention to Geraint Thomas's last tour today.

[Lance Armstrong]

Thank you for that.

[Bradley Wiggins]

40 years of age is his 14th tour. He won seven years ago. Eight years ago now. Surprised they didn't let him tour in 2007.

[Lance Armstrong]

They let Tata and UAE rolling into Paris. Yeah, I was, I was kind of expecting slash hoping for a little tip of the cap to Garen Thomas, but yes.

[Spencer Martin]

Yeah, yeah.

[Lance Armstrong]

That's an important shout out. He's gonna, he's, he's gonna, he's smart, he's got. I don't know, he seems go down.

[Bradley Wiggins]

As I think with him and cab our greatest ever cyclists in the UK with what they've achieved. I mean, he's been saying a lot coming from you.

[Lance Armstrong]

Yeah.

[Bradley Wiggins]

But he's been on every step of the podium at the Tour de France, second in Giro, double Olympic champion. He's been epic.

[Johan Bruyneel]

2007, I was just graduating high school and Garrett Thomas doing the job. Unreal.

[Lance Armstrong]

Every. Oh, last thing before I go. Yes, yes, yes. This is. I knew I was forgetting something. I want to take just a second. Stick with me. I want to thank everybody here on the team and I'll just start right here. So, Bradley, thank you so much. George Hinkapi. Thank you. George. George. You may be doing this since 1989. We've been running this back.

[Spencer Martin]

That's right.

[Lance Armstrong]

That's a long time. Spencer, thank you so much. Johan, if you're still there. Thank you, Ketone, IQ and all our sponsors. Thank you. Peacock. Hey, been cool. Thanks for having us back. And there's a lot of people behind these curtains and around this room you can't see Dave Bolch, another person we've been running this play for 30 plus years. Liz Crude sitting down here right in front of you another person. We've been running this play 30 plus years. Gabrielle, my very favorite Costa Rican. He's back there somewhere. Elise, thank you. Ashish Patel. I don't think as she is here today. Lars, all the sales. Amazing. Colton or as George says, Coltland. Thank you. Lucy Hall. Thank you Alana. ZZ of course we saw him earlier. John Raider, everybody at virality social media agency and our host down here in the basement right below Aspen mountain fitness, Mark Kiernan. Amazing, amazing man that that has let us crash his basement for the last few years. So I think I covered everybody. Did I miss anybody?

[Spencer Martin]

No. No. All right.

[Lance Armstrong]

Thanks to you all. Thanks to everybody for tuning in. It's been fun. We'll see you all next year.

[George Hincapie]

See you next year.

[Spencer Martin]

Sam.